Ferguson happy to bide his time in quest for Tevez

Sir Alex Ferguson has reassured Carlos Tevez that Manchester United are prepared to wait beyond the August 31 transfer deadline in order to take him to Old Trafford.

With just five weeks to go before the transfer window closes, the signing of Tevez is likely to be delayed by the decision of Kia Joorabchian, the Argentinian forward's representative, to launch legal proceedings against West Ham United in an effort to resolve the dispute surrounding the player's ownership and right to seek a move away from Upton Park.

High court proceedings could leave Tevez in a state of limbo, but while Joorabchian's decision to bypass the Court of Arbitration for Sport in favour of a legal action is one that is expected to take longer to complete, it is the route most likely to bring about a clear resolution, with United welcoming the opportunity to clear up the issue of the player's current contract situation before they sign him.

"I feel more confident now because the agent is confident enough to take it to the high court," said Ferguson. "You can be embarrassed there if it's not right and you can lose everything, so he must be very confident regarding the situation with West Ham. Once it goes to the high court, you never know what will happen, but it's better for us because we will know exactly where we stand and that's the best way to resolve it. I would imagine that it would be done before the deadline, but we would wait for him anyway if we have to. We've gone so far now, there's no point stepping back."

Ferguson believes that in Tevez he has identified a player capable of ending his search for a world-class goalscorer following the departure of Ruud van Nistelrooy to Real Madrid last summer. "There are very few strikers in the world market," added the United manager. "Quite simply, top strikers are becoming rarities and it's very difficult to get them, but I think what Carlos Tevez has shown is his ability to play in England and the immense influence he had on a team at the bottom of the league. I don't think there's any doubt about that. He kept West Ham up because his performances were that good. So there are good reasons to go for a player like that, apart from those two points.

"Sometimes you worry about players from South America, that there will be a settling-in period. When he first went to West Ham, he was a substitute a lot of the time, but once he got a regular game for them, he was fine. We didn't go for him last summer because we weren't sure of the arrangement."

While Ferguson remains bullish about his chances of signing Tevez, he has once again ruled out Liverpool's hopes of prising another Argentinian international, the defender Gabriel Heinze, from Old Trafford.

The 29-year-old Heinze is keen to complete a £6.8m move to Anfield and legal proceedings to force the move are being investigated by Liverpool and Heinze, who both believe that United cannot block the transfer, having given written permission for the player to find a new club. Ferguson, who has said that Heinze is not for sale to any of United's domestic rivals, insists that the move will not happen, however.

He said: "I've not spoken to Gaby, but he's our player and that's the important thing. He's not Liverpool's player, despite them going on as if he is. He has two years left on his contract, but if he completes his contract and then leaves at the end of it, that's fine by us.

"Liverpool are opportunist, like the rest of them. If an agent came to me and presented me with a letter saying Steven Gerrard was available for a certain fee, I would do the same."